N.A. Carson

Phoenix is a loser.

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He was labeled an outcast after his mom was sent to the insane asylum for mutilating hundreds of birds. Instead of turning on her, Phoenix stood up for his mom and ran his mouth a little too much.

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Ever since then things haven’t gone so well for him and his sister, Chickadee. Anger issues have her suspended more than in school.

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The world outside his room sucks, so Phoenix is obsessed with video games. There, he can be anyone. He can be cool and strong. But, he’s usually the low-ranking player, though he works hard to improve his ranking.

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With the new virtual reality game, Slash, coming on the market, Phoenix would do anything to play it. It’s far too expensive, even for his best friend Edgar’s rich grandma. Disappointed, he heads home and ends up running into a gang whose favorite thing to do is to torment the bird boy.

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Phoenix hides in a warehouse to wait for them to give up. Once alone, he noticed the different crates around him and one caught his eye. He pries open the side and see a game immersion helmet. One that will transport him mentally into the game, just like the Slash game console. He searches the crate for a name, but only finds two words.

And for the first time, it was a game he had never heard about: Anarchists Rise.